Charlotte's Self-Conquest!

Royal Capital Knights selection?

Watching Charlotte's disappearing figure, Carl's eyes held a trace of thoughtfulness. He had to admit that Charlotte really was his benefactor.

If he hadn't hugged Charlotte, how could he have awakened the first gate of the Eight Gates so easily?

And this was only the first gate of the Eight Gates.

It had already enhanced his physical abilities—and even his strength—by a full tenfold.

And that wasn't all.

Right now, Carl was confident that he could rival Asta using nothing but his fists.

As for his special Four-leaf Grimoire...

According to the system's prompt, as long as he struck the Grimoire with his fist, he could cast magic—and it would be All-Attribute Magic.

Carl was immensely looking forward to it.

Right now, he only wanted to find somewhere deserted and give it a proper try.

As for the Royal Capital Knights selection, he naturally intended to participate as well.

If he didn't take part in the kingdom's knight selection, then with his current strength, when would he ever grind his way up to become a top-tier powerhouse? Some night, he might just run into an unforeseen disaster.

Besides, there was also that woman, Charlotte.

A glimmer of hope flickered in Carl's eyes.

In the distance, Asta was roaring at the people around him who were mocking him, shouting loudly:

"I will definitely become the Wizard King!"

"Not just put in a little effort and then pat myself on the back!"

"My path of magic will surely surpass everyone else's!"

"Yuno, I challenge you!"

"I'll become stronger!"

However, when Yuno walked up to Asta, he merely said coldly:

"Awaken your Grimoire first."

Asta immediately staggered.

But Yuno had already turned around and walked up to Carl.

"There are three days left until the knight selection."

"Since we all came from the Forsaken Realm, why don't we travel together?"

Yuno seemed to naturally assume that Carl would definitely participate in the knight selection.

In the distance, a trace of determination showed in Asta's eyes as well.

He suddenly rushed over and looked at Carl.

"Yuno's right!"

"Why don't we form a team and go to the Royal Capital for the selection together?"

Seeing how excited Asta was, Carl hesitated.

Though he didn't know the exact situation, Yuno and Asta were the sort of people who naturally attracted endless trouble. If he followed them, he would very likely run into danger.

He wasn't strong enough yet.

Perhaps a polite refusal was the best choice right now.

However, just as Carl was about to refuse, the system prompt suddenly sounded in his mind.

"Ding! Magic Stone Fragment detected."

"Absorb the Magic Stone Fragment to awaken a skill. When used in conjunction with the Eight Gates, it will possess tremendous power."

Hearing the prompt in his mind, Carl's gaze instantly froze.

His eyes fixed directly on the Magic Stone Fragment hanging before Yuno's chest.

Carl was truly itching with impatience.

Well, damn.

So the opportunity had been right in front of him all along.

It seemed he really had no choice but to follow Asta and Yuno around for a while.

And if he could earn the favor of both of them, perhaps he could continue upgrading the Eight Gates and open the second gate: the Gate of Healing.

Carl brought up the intangible panel to take a look.

The empty progress bar requiring a full 100 favorability points completely solidified his decision.

He smiled.

"Sure. Going together isn't impossible."

Upon hearing Carl's words, Yuno immediately revealed a faint smile.

Asta, standing beside him, was even more excited.

"Carl! From now on, the three of us are best brothers!"

"If you need anything, just call me!"

Seeing Asta's overly familiar expression, one that was even a little touched and excited, Carl waited for quite a while without receiving even the slightest favorability prompt.

He looked at the two of them in confusion and couldn't help sighing inwardly:

"Could it be that only powerful people like Charlotte can grant favorability points?"

"Wouldn't that mean the sky is falling?"

"Or... does this favorability system only work on the opposite sex and not on men?"

Carl continued pondering.

His understanding of this so-called "favorability" setting seemed to have deepened another layer because of the system.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

From far away, Asta and Yuno hurried over to Carl.

"Let's go to Hage Village together!"

"I'll introduce you to my fiancée—Sister Lily!"

Yuno instantly rolled his eyes at Asta.

That guy was as unreliable as ever.

Carl merely smiled and turned to look toward a certain room high atop the Magic Tower.

Charlotte had appeared from there earlier.

At that moment, his gaze remained fixed on that room from afar.

However, there was no response from within the darkened space.

Carl then gave a carefree smile, turned around, and chased after Yuno and Asta in the distance.

In the corner, the man whose expression had originally been gloomy had long since vanished.

Meanwhile, in the distant room, Charlotte's gaze rested upon the direction Carl had just left.

Though the master of the Magic Tower was far older than Charlotte, in this world where magic reigned supreme, he still bowed to her with utmost respect.

"Lady Charlotte, when do you plan to depart?"

"If you're not in a hurry, how about I prepare some humble wine and entertain you?"

Charlotte swept a cold glance over the Magic Tower master.

Her icy voice rang out:

"No need."

"I merely recovered a little magic power. I'll be returning to the Royal Capital now."

Her gaze once again turned toward the direction Carl had left.

The next instant, her entire body became a streak of light and vanished from the Magic Tower.

A trace of regret appeared on the Magic Tower master's face. Then, with delight, he shut the Magic Tower's doors.

With today's "performance," he could take another step upward. And once he did, he could completely escape this impoverished Forsaken Realm.

Even becoming the master of a Magic Tower in the Common Realm would be far better than staying here.

Charlotte, who had departed, was now hiding in the shadows.

With her strength, how could she possibly have failed to notice that among the people who had awakened their Grimoires earlier, there was a man whose magic power was clearly several times stronger than the rest?

Moreover, he wore a hood, and his Chain Magic even carried a trace of evil aura.

Charlotte's body grew somewhat warm as she muttered under her breath:

"That damned bastard."

"How dare he hug me in public..."

"When had I, Charlotte, ever done something so embarrassing and shameful?"

The rough figure of "Yami Sukehiro" involuntarily surfaced in her mind again.

Yet compared to Carl, that figure still fell short by quite a bit.

After all, Yami Sukehiro really did look rather rough around the edges.

Charlotte secretly spat at herself, but Carl had saved her dignity at the time.

No matter what, she should repay this debt of gratitude as soon as possible.

Otherwise, wouldn't the reputation of the Blue Rose Knights' captain be ruined by her own hands?

"Yes, that must be it."

There were absolutely no other thoughts involved.